by Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports

by Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK - New York Knicks coach Mike Woodson says his team is a contender for the NBA title.

That might be true in the sense that the Knicks (35-21) could finish as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and reach the conference finals.

But whether it's the third-place Knicks, the second-place Indiana Pacers (37-22) or even the surprising Chicago Bulls (34-25) without Derrick Rose, unseating the defending champion Miami Heat as the best in the East will be a monumental task.

After a sluggish first half Sunday at Madison Square Garden that included 8-for-19 shooting from the field in the second quarter and six turnovers, the Heat dismantled the Knicks over the final 24 minutes and won 99-93. Capping the scoring with an exclamation point was a powerful, one-handed dunk by LeBron James.

The Heat (43-14) have a seven-game lead on the Pacers and are 7½ up on the Knicks. The first victory against New York in three meetings this season extended Miami's winning streak to a franchise record-tying 14 games.

They won with an impressive display of offense and defense in the second half, led by James, who had 29 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and a blocked shot.

"His motor is limitless, and I don't want to take it for granted," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of James.

The Heat don't have it wrapped up; they are 0-2 vs. the Pacers, whom they'll host Sunday. But in a seven-game series, it's getting harder to see a team in the East beating the Heat. Still, as USA TODAY Sports takes a look at five teams most likely to win the NBA championship this season, the Knicks make the list.

MIAMI HEAT: Wade, supporting cast hitting stride

James is in great position to collect his fourth MVP award because more impressive than his stats - 27.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.3 assists and 1.7 steals a game - is his command of the game. He seemingly always makes the right play and rarely forces a shot, and it has resulted in the best shooting percentage of his career from the field (56.3%) and on three-pointers (41%).

Dwyane Wade is also having a fantastic season now that his left knee is healthy after surgery in July. It's the best he has felt in two seasons, and it shows. For a superstar not considered the best player on his team, his numbers aren't bad: 23.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks a game in February.

"When I'm out there with LeBron and (Chris Bosh), I'm more of a playmaker," Wade said of the Big Three. "When those guys are not in, I'm more of an attacker, more of a scorer."

Miami is even more dangerous when Shane Battier, Ray Allen and Mario Chalmers are making shots.

But just as important, if not more important, than offense, the Heat are rounding into the defensive team that made them champions last season. They can win at home or on the road and by playing different styles.

"We are winning at all facets of the game, and we want to try to continue it," James said.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS: Parker injury puts young guards to test

For a month, the team with the best record (47-14 after Sunday's 114-75 win vs. the Detroit Pistons) will have to hold off the hard-charging Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers without point guard Tony Parker, who was in the MVP discussion the last few weeks.

Parker, who led the Spurs with 21 points and 7.6 assists a game, will be out for a month - an estimated 14 games - with a Grade 2 ankle sprain.

Coach Gregg Popovich will use Nando De Colo, Cory Joseph and Patrick Mills at the point and probably will slide over shooting guard Manu Ginobili (who had a career-high 15 assists in Friday's 28-point win vs. the Sacramento Kings, when Parker was hurt). The Spurs are 8-7 over the last three seasons when Parker is out.

San Antonio will face nine teams that not only have winning records but also are solid playoff teams. The final four in that stretch: the Denver Nuggets, Clippers, Heat and Memphis Grizzlies.

"We've played with all different kinds of people throughout this year," All-Star forward Tim Duncan said. "We're going to rally. Pop is going to change some lineups. We're obviously not going to replace (Parker). But we're going to have to change the way we play for a little while."

LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS: Paul makes team click and contend

Of all the star players who succeeded in getting traded for a better situation, Chris Paul stands alone in making the most of his move.

With his team having won eight of the last 10 after Sunday's 108-104 home loss to the Thunder, the player who came to Los Angeles from the New Orleans Hornets before last season has the Clippers (43-19) in the hunt for their first NBA title.

The question with the Clippers, though, is whether they can play their up-tempo style in the postseason, when the pace typically slows. Their active defense is the key, as it often kick-starts their offense that struggles in a halfcourt set.

Paul is far and away the biggest reason they must be taken seriously, averaging 16.4 points, 9.5 assists and 2.5 steals to help turn around the organization. It all begins and ends with him: The Clippers are 6-6 with Paul sidelined.

The Blake Griffin-DeAndre Jordan frontcourt continues to be a good fit; Griffin has a team-high 18.5-point average and Jordan adds 8.8 points and 7.0 rebounds a game. Depth is unparalleled, with Jamal Crawford (17.0-point average), a sixth man of the year contender, and veterans such as Chauncey Billups, Lamar Odom and Matt Barnes and third-year guard Eric Bledsoe playing key roles.

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER: Vulnerability trumped only by potential

Even after Sunday's win, the reigning Western Conference champions have looked vulnerable of late, playing just better than .500 over the last six weeks.

But even after the James Harden trade with the Houston Rockets in October and Kevin Martin coming aboard, the Thunder (43-16) aren't going anywhere just yet for two reasons: Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

The league's best duo is better than ever this season and will be there at the end again as long as the rest of the offense doesn't disappear. For as good as Durant (28.6-point average) and Westbrook (23.4) have been - ranked second in offensive efficiency - the scoring options thin out after Martin and Serge Ibaka.

Martin (14.5-point average) has been as good a fit as they could have found because of his shooting range and the efficiency in his game. But can he and Ibaka deliver in the playoffs and keep the heat off the Thunder's dynamic duo? The Thunder have progressed quite remarkably for three seasons in a row, from a first-round playoff loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, to the Western Conference finals, to last season's Finals loss to Miami. Can they make the last step?

NEW YORK KNICKS: With Anthony at his best, anything's possible

The Knicks of the first six weeks of the season - they were a conference-best 18-5 - aren't the Knicks of the last 10 weeks. They've slipped from atop the Eastern Conference in the early run to third place.

The Knicks aren't the same top-five defensive team they were last season, but it's not their defense that is a concern.

In the first 23 games, New York was an efficient scoring machine, the NBA's No. 2 offense, behind the Oklahoma City Thunder. Three-pointers were going in at a 41% clip. The offense has slowed, especially on three-pointers; the team is shooting 37% from behind the arc for the season.

What they have in their favor is a solid defense anchored by center Tyson Chandler (11.3 rebounds a game). And even with the offensive woes, when Carmelo Anthony (28.6-point average) is on the floor, the Knicks have the potential to put up big numbers.

There are signs the offense can turn it around. Forward Amar'e Stoudemire (13.6-point average) is contributing, and Jason Kidd broke out of his three-point shooting slump Sunday, making four of five against the Heat.

"There's not a team in this league we can't beat, and we can be beaten by any team if we don't come ready to play," Woodson said. "I like where we are as a ballclub. Could we be better? Absolutely."

A tough March schedule will reveal answers.

Of New York's remaining 16 games this month, nine are against teams that appear to be headed to the postseason.